Leleiohoku I
| William Pitt Leleiohoku I | |
|---|---|
| Royal Governor of Hawaii | |
| Born |
March 31, 1821 Kailua-Kona, Hawaii Island |
| Died | October 21, 1848 (aged 27) Honolulu, Oahu |
| Burial | December 30, 1848 October 30, 1865 Mauna ʻAla Royal Mausoleum |
| Spouse |
Nāhiʻenaʻena Keʻelikōlani |
| Issue | John William Pitt Kīnaʻu |
| Father | Kalanimoku |
| Mother | Kiliwehi |
William Pitt Leleiohoku I (March 31, 1821 – October 21, 1848) was a Hawaiian noble during the Kingdom of Hawaii who married two notable princesses and served as Royal Governor of Hawaii island.
Leleiohoku was born on March 31, 1821 in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii. He was the son of the Prime Minister Kalanimoku who was called The Iron Pillar of Hawaii and took the English name of William Pitt after his contemporary William Pitt the Younger of England. His mother was Kiliwehi, the daughter of King Kamehameha I. She name him in honor of the date of death of Kamehameha on the Hawaiian calendar, on the night of Hoku, Kaelo (May 14); Leleiohoku means "Fled in the time of Hoku" in the Hawaiian language. Other accounts give his mother as Kuwahine, who was another wife of Kalanimoku and a daughter of Governor Kaikioʻewa of Kauai and Piʻipiʻi Kalanikaulihiwakama, Kamehameha I's half-sister. He was considered of the highest hereditary descent after the king. He was hānai (adopted) by John Adams Kuakini, who was Governor of Hawaii Island and brother of the powerful Queen Kaʻahumanu. He attended Lahainaluna Seminary ran by the American missionaries and converted to Christianity.
He was married in November 25, 1835 to the Princess Nāhiʻenaʻena when he was only 14; the princess was 6 years his senior. The marriage had been arranged by the missionaries to halt a sibling marriage between King Kamehameha III and Nāhiʻenaʻena. Their Christian wedding was held in Waineʻe Church. It was not a happy union. He inherited little of his father's land because Kalanimoku, shortly before his death, made a verbal will leaving his entire property to his niece Kekauʻōnohi, the previous queen of King Kamehameha II. Kekauʻōnohi, although only a cousin of Leleiohoku, was regarded according to ancient Hawaiian customs as his sister. It appears that Kalanimoku made a verbal disposition of his property to her (who was older than Leleiohoku) and willed that he should be the kanaka living under her.
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